- The stalker, who shot a 17-year-old girl in Faridabad, has been arrested
- The accused, Jatin Mangla, was injured in a police encounter and is hospitalised
- The girl, a Class 12 student, was shot twice and is currently under treatment
The stalker who shot a 17-year-old girl in Faridabad after she spurned his advances has been arrested and has suffered a bullet injury in his leg in an encounter with police. Jatin Mangla, whose chilling attack on the Class 12 student was captured on CCTV, has been hospitalised and is said to be out of danger.
The attack took place in Ballabhgarh on Monday. The teenage girl was walking in an alley near home with two friends when Jatin approached her and fired two shots. One bullet hit the girl on the shoulder, and the other grazed her abdomen. As she screamed for help, Jatin sped away on his bike. The girl was rushed to the hospital and is under treatment.
The incident set off alarm bells for local police, and an extensive search for the accused began.
Varun Dahiya, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch), told the media that five teams were searching for the accused after Monday's incident. "We have found that he was stalking and harassing the girl for quite some time. He procured eight SIM cards in a month to contact the girl from different numbers. We also found that he was carrying multiple weapons. He dropped the attack weapon at the crime scene, but he had another gun that he hid near his home," the senior officer said.
After Jatin was arrested, a police team took him to the spot where he said he hid the firearm. "When he was taken to recover the weapon, he fired at the police team and tried to escape. Luckily, the cops were not injured. He was shot in the leg in retaliatory firing," he said.
In a message to the public, the senior officer said anyone involved in such activities will face the strictest action. "If anyone is involved in such activities, they should surrender to the police. Otherwise, they will get a reply in the same language," he said.
Earlier, the victim's sister told NDTV that she was preparing for her Class 12 board exams and took the same route on her way back from a coaching centre. "He was waiting for her, you can see in the CCTV footage. As soon as he saw her, her fired," she said.
Jatin, she said, had aimed for the heart, but the girl raised her hand to protect herself. "The bullet went through her hand and hit her shoulder." The teenager's sister said Jatin had been stalking her for a few days. "We contacted his family. His mother pleaded with us and said he won't do it again. So we let it go. And the next day, this happens."
Asked why the family did not register a police complaint against Jatin after he started stalking the girl, her sister said, "His family was pleading. We should have (registered a complaint), but we didn't."
